My Scammer Became Vile

My story began in the spring of 2017 when I met a man on Facebook.

He claimed to own an offshore underwater welding company and was on his last job before retiring. We communicated daily via text and email. I must admit, I wasn’t sure from the get-go! Then, his Facebook was shut down, but he convinced me it was a technicality that he did not need it.

After 3 months, he claimed he needed $700 for a fresh water supply, and his money was all tied up on land, since he was in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. So, I sent it. He promised me he would pay me back as soon as he was on land. He told me his paycheck would be well over $ 1 million and that I should not worry about $700. I then wired another $3,100, which he said he needed for the food supply and for some equipment maintenance.

He told me to start looking for a home to buy, so when he got done, he, his two little girls, and I would have a beautiful new home to move into. Thank God I did not list my home for sale.

He was due to arrive here within a couple of days, and lo and behold, his friend called me and told me he had a stroke and was stuck at sea, and he needed me to wire money for medical transport. I didn’t send anything for about two weeks, at which time he begged and was crying that he loved me and did not want to die.

I called the US Coast Guard, thinking they could find him and rescue him. After a six-hour search, they called me back, told me there was no such vessel, and asked if I was sure it was off the coast of Santa Barbara. It was at this time that I told the US Coast Guard I had never met him. Naturally, they were mad for wasting time and resources, and they told me someone was scamming me.

I just did not want to wire the $5,000 he claimed to need, so he arranged for me to send a cashier’s check to a friend’s girlfriend in Texas. I got a call from her, and she told me not to send it to her because she did not want to be involved. She was actually laundering money for her boyfriend, who was also in business with my scammer! She told me she had just sent $8,000 to Nigeria.

When I confronted him, my scammer convinced me she was lying, but I guess she wasn’t. I then wired him the $5,000 he needed for a medical transport that would bring him straight to me. As soon as I wired the money, I knew I should not have.

I received a call the next morning from his friend, who said he needed an additional $2,000 because they had to use some of their resources and were short on funds. I broke down crying, I knew I had been had!

After one month of not sending any more money, he turned vile towards me. He actually sent me pictures of a young woman in a bikini and told me he spent my $8,800 on her and that I was nothing but a lonely old bag that no one would want. It’s been a long time now, and I still suffer. It wasn’t just the loss of the money, but he broke my heart and killed my self-esteem.

Ashlee, USA